Bosma hopeful Dems will return

Indiana House leaders talked Wednesday.

March 10, 2011|KEVIN ALLEN

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indiana House of Representatives adjourned for the rest of the week Wednesday, but Speaker Brian Bosma did so with a "glimmer of hope" the legislative stalemate that began more than two weeks ago could be approaching its final days.

Minority Leader B. Patrick Bauer, who has been at an Urbana, Ill., hotel with most other House Democrats since they walked out of the chamber more than two weeks ago, sent Bosma a letter Tuesday afternoon and called him Wednesday morning.

Bauer, D-South Bend, wants to be sure that more than 20 bills that had passed House committees but, because of the impasse, missed a deadline to be moved to the full House will not be revived.

Neither side reached any major breakthrough Wednesday, but both leaders called the interactions positive.

Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said it was the first time Bauer had reached out to him since visiting the Statehouse a week earlier. Bosma added that it provided "my first glimmer of hope in three weeks" that Democrats will return soon.

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"I am hopeful Monday is a workday for everyone," he said.

Bauer said the two parties still haven't reached resolutions on three bills that concern school vouchers, labor agreements for public construction projects, and collective bargaining for teachers and public employees.

"It could still be far away," Bauer said in a phone interview. "You've still got workers concerned about being pushed down to lower wages, and that hasn't been resolved. But they're working on it, and that's a good thing."

Bosma said he adjourned the House for the rest of the week because many lawmakers who aren't from Indianapolis are without lodging while thousands of basketball fans are in the city for the Big Ten men's basketball tournament.

That means most representatives won't be around today when thousands of people are expected to rally outside the Statehouse to support the Democratic walkout and protest bills aimed at restricting unions and the state's prevailing wage rules. The Indiana State AFL-CIO announced Wednesday that more than 25,000 people could attend the event.